


Haunting Me

by ZoneRobotnik



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Andrew is a bastard, Dubious Consent, Emotional Manipulation, Gaslighting, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:55:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,275
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24673465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoneRobotnik/pseuds/ZoneRobotnik
Summary: Varian thought he left all his dark secrets in Corona, but one of them has escaped to find him.((Darker rewrite of "Haunting".))
Relationships: Andrew | Hubert/Varian (Disney: Tangled), Hugo/Varian (Disney: Varian and the Seven Kingdoms)
Comments: 25
Kudos: 137





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Varimoon69](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Varimoon69/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Haunting](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24502837) by [ZoneRobotnik](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZoneRobotnik/pseuds/ZoneRobotnik). 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Varian couldn’t sleep. He hid it well enough, when he wasn’t sharing a tent with his teammates that were too exhausted to set up their own, but pretending to sleep would only get him so far. He reason he couldn’t sleep is because he had been having…nightmares.  
  
Well, he _constantly_ had nightmares, usually about creepy demon ladies or his friend-turned-villain kidnapping him to a tower and hitting him with a wave of black rocks. And sometimes it was about him attacking Old Corona. Lately, though, it had been about his time in prison.  
  
About…Andrew.  
  
He’d opened his heart and soul to the man and every time he dreamed he screamed at his past self to stop, to say nothing more, to not give him anything to work with. But, sooner or later he would be pulled into it, one with the memory, and then it would warp and Andrew would moved his hand from his shoulder to his neck and hiss in his ear:  
  
“Traitors don’t live in Saporia.”  
  
Then he’d wake up with a scream, or he’d just be woken up _because_ he was screaming. He never told his worried teammates anything.  
  
He never had. He planned to never tell them at all. His past was just that, past. His crimes, his mistakes.  
  
So many mistakes.  
  
Hugo would be surprised, maybe even shocked.  
Yong would cry.  
Nuru would never trust him again if she knew.  
  
So he kept his darkness locked up inside and gave them feeble “I’m okay, it was just a nightmare” lies when they woke him up.  
  
And if he just didn’t sleep, they wouldn’t have to wake him up.  
  
Since he was awake away, he decided to step out of the tent and stretched. “Hey, Hugo. I’m awake, let me take over watch.”  
  
“You’re not supposed to be up yet.” Hugo said, fiddling with something.  
  
“I can’t sleep anymore.” He lied.  
  
“You haven’t slept at _all_.” Hugo turned his green-eyed gaze to his blue ones, frowning at the bags under his eyes. “Have you?”  
  
Varian sighed and walked over to sit down and look into the fire. “No.”  
  
“Feel like talking about it?” Hugo asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
“No.” Varian poked at the fire with a stick.  
  
“Feel like _ever_ talking about it?” Hugo sat down next to him.  
  
“No.” Varian shook his head.  
  
Hugo sighed. “Look, I get it. We all got things we don’t want to think about. But, we can’t help you with your nightmares if you don’t tell us about them.” He nudged him. “Come on, just one?”  
  
Varian looked at him, exasperated. “No.”  
  
“Oh, come on. What do I gotta do to unlock the mystery that is Varian?” He poked his chest. “All we know about you is that you’re the Royal Engineer of Corona. Well, you don’t get that kind of title from doing nothing, so there’s gotta be a story. How did someone as young as you—“  
  
“You’re only a year older than me.”  
  
“—get to be something like _that_?” Hugo went on, like he hadn’t been interrupted.  
  
“I helped the Kingdom with my alchemy prowess and befriended the royal family.” Varian said, looking back at the fire.  
  
Hugo scooted a bit closer. “So? What’d you do?”  
  
Varian stared at the fired silently, the sound of people yelling, of machines, of sadistic laughing. Who was laughing? He was laughing. Cass was laughing. Andrew was laughing. Zhan Tiri was laughing. He looked into the flames and saw faces he’s tried to put behind him for years.  
  
What did he do for Corona? For Rapunzel? Built them machines? Translated a scroll? He learned about how to build a hot-air balloon from the Saporians. He learned how to translate the final spell from the demon, who was just using him and Cassandra to escape where Demanitus had sent her.  
  
“Oh…various stuff.” He said, after realizing he’d been silent too long.  
  
Truthfully, he’d done more to _hurt_ Rapunzel than help her.  
  
He jolted when he felt a familiar gaze on him and got up, grabbing his staff and going over to check the trees and bushes around the camp. His heart was pounding in his ears, his body trembling.  
  
“…ian?”  
  
He felt a hand touch his shoulder and let out a scream, turning around. He gasped when he realized it was Hugo behind him and held his staff close to him. “I…S-Sorry.”  
  
“Varian…what happened?” Hugo looked out into the treeline. “Did you see someone?”  
  
“No…” Varian shook his head. “Just…just my imagination.”  
  
Hugo looked back at him and sighed. “C’mon, space-case.” He let him back to the tent. “Try to get some sleep, huh?”  
  
Varian sighed and entered the tent, laying down. Hugo smiled and then looked out at the tree-line, frowning.  
  
\---  
  
Varian was extremely jumpy for the next week. The slightest sound had him on-edge, if you touched him when he wasn’t looking he’d scream and look terrified for his _life_ before realizing who you were and calming down, stammering out an apology.  
  
Yong was starting get really worried. Nuru was getting irritated by being screamed at by their suddenly jumpy team leader. And Hugo was silently trying to figure out how to get him to open up about his secret life story.  
  


Another week and Nuru had enough.  
  
“Varian, what is your _problem_?!” She demanded. He flinched at her tone and looked guilty.  
  
“It’s….” He faltered, then froze, his pupils shrinking to pinpricks again. The other three exchanged confused expressions as Varian looked around. Weirdly, his raccoon was _also_ on-edge now, even hissing at nothing.  
  
“It…it must’ve just been a bird.” He said, moving a hand up to soothe his pet, even though he was still freaking out himself.  
  
“Varian?” Nuru asked.  
  
“…When I was 15…I got involved with some bad people.” He finally admitted. “I keep thinking I can hear them approaching.”  
  
“’Bad people’?” Hugo raised an eyebrow.  
  
Varian nodded. “…They’re called the…” He faltered. “I…I can’t. If I say it…they might appear.”  
  
“Ah, the whole ‘speak of the devil’, thing.” Hugo smirked at the others.  
  
“Yeah…sounds about right.” Varian said glumly. “I was in a bad place…emotionally, mentally…I did something really bad and ended up in prison.”  
  
“YOU? in PRISON?” Hugo laughed and stuck out his leg. “Pull the other one.”  
  
“I’m not joking!” Varian said furiously, and Hugo put his leg down.  
  
“…Sorry.” Hugo sighed. “Okay, so you made a mistake. Whatever, right? You did your time.”  
  
“Yeah…” Varian sighed. “My cellmate was the leader of the…the bad people. He...he convinced me to do something terrible and swore to _kill_ me when I turned on him. He tried to then, but I was rescued. But, I’ve been having…nightmares about him lately. And it’s made me think that…he might be coming for me.”  
  
“Ah, so this is about your nightmares.” Hugo walked over and reached out to place a hand on his shoulder. Varian watched his hand until it landed and then focused his attention on Hugo’s face. “Look, have you actually seen any evidence he’s really here?”  
  
Varian shook his head.  
  
“So, it _might_ just be your _brilliant_ mind playing tricks on you.” Hugo reasoned.  
  
“You…You might be right.” Varian relaxed a bit. “I just…” He looked at Hugo. “Can I…” He faltered, looking unsure.  
  
“Share my tent?” Hugo suggested with a grin.  
  
“We share a tent half the time anyway.” Varian frowned. “No, I…” He glanced away. “…A hug?”  
  
“You know you don’t have to ask.” Hugo smiled and hugged him. Nuru and Yong moved forward to hug him too and Ruddiger patted his cheek soothingly. Prometheus came over and bumped his head against Varian’s back to join the group hug and Varian laughed a bit.  
  
“Feel better?” Hugo asked when they all stepped back to give him some space.  
  
“Mm…slightly.” Varian nodded.  
  
“We need to find an inn soon; these woods are driving our team leader nutso!” Hugo turned to Nuru. “Where’s the closest one on our way, navigator?”  
  
Nuru went to go get the map while Yong gave Varian another hug. He smiled and patted his back, his brow still furrowed in worry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The past can really, really hurt.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pieces of Varian's past are coming to the attention of the others and they want answers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

The next day, Varian realized his fears weren’t completely unfounded when Nuru came in with one of his old “Wanted” posters, asking what this was about.  
  
“I _told_ you I went to _prison_.” He said, rubbing his arm nervously. “That I did something _really bad_.”  
  
“Whoa, wait.” Hugo took the poster and looked between it and him. “This is—this is REAL? It’s not some _joke_ , some _prank_?” The freckled boy on the poster was younger and a lot more sullen and cold, but _definitely_ the same person as the young man before him.  
  
“You thought I was _joking_?” Varian sighed heavily. “I stole the withered Sundrop Flower to try to save my dad from an alchemy accident I caused that trapped him in amber. I was experimenting with the black rocks, trying to—”  
  
“Oh, no, not _those_ things.” Nuru shuddered. “They were _everywhere_.”  
  
“—get rid of them, and I guess something went wrong and it changed into amber and I thought maybe the Sundrop Flower could help, but Rapunzel had already let me down and broken her promise to help me _before_ , so I decided I had to steal it so I used a truth serum on everyone in the castle to get inside—”  
  
“How did you get _everyone_ to take it?” Yong asked in awe.  
  
“I put it in cookies. Everyone in Corona has a sweet tooth.” Varian explained, then went on. “Anyways, I got in and stole the flower. And that’s why I have a ‘Wanted’ poster.”  
  
“But, why is it out _here_?” He realized, taking it and looking it over, paling when he saw something on the back.  
  
“What is it?” Hugo looked over his shoulder. “’Good times, huh? Remember those days?’ I’m confused…”  
  
Varian dropped the Wanted poster like it was on fire and stepped back. He _knew_ that handwriting. He looked around frantically, then fled into the tent.  
  
Yong picked it up. “…Wow, he was _little_.” He realized, looking at the picture of the sullen teenager.  
  
“Not much older than you, looks like.” Hugo commented.  
  
Nuru looked towards the tent, concerned, then headed over and stepped inside. “Varian?”  
  
“He’s here…he’s _here_ …he’s going to _kill_ me…he’s _here_ …” Varian was curled in the corner, his head in his hands, his body violently trembling and tears slipping down his cheeks. “How did he get out? How did he get out? How did he find me?” He curled up tighter. “H-How did he _find_ me?”  
  
“Varian…” Nuru moved next to him and gingerly wrapped her arms around his shoulders. He tensed, then seemed to realize who it was and turned to her, wailing into her shoulder as he clung to her.  
  
\--  
  
“I’ve never seen Varian look so terrified.” Nuru said as she sat around the campfire with Hugo and Yong. Varian had passed out from crying and was asleep in the tent with Ruddiger curled up next to him. “Not ever. Not even when he nearly fell into a trap full of spikes.”  
  
“Yeah, he just kind of nervously laughed that one off.” Hugo remembered.  
  
Nuru looked at the writing on the back of the poster. “The best I can guess, he recognized the handwriting as someone he knew.”  
  
“His old cellmate, I’m guessing.” Hugo frowned.  
  
“Is Varian going to be okay?” Yong asked worriedly.  
  
“You know…I don’t know.” Hugo got up and went to feed the donkey. “He’s certainly not okay right _now_ but, maybe once we get out of these woods, he’ll get better.”  
  
\--  
  
The next day, when they’d moved on to another part of the woods, they found another “clue”. It was meaningless to the rest of them, but Varian had reacted really badly to it and gone into another panic attack.  
  
“I don’t get it. It’s just a bandanna with fangs drawn on it.” Hugo said, looking it over with a frown. “Not even a message on this one.”  
  
“He’s not wearing it in the poster.” Nuru said, looking it over. “Goodness, though, he was an angry child.”  
  
“Hey, not everyone _smirks_ on their ‘Wanted’ posters.” Hugo raised an eyebrow.  
  
“Hm…” Nuru set the poster to the side. “Well, perhaps he’ll give us an answer when he comes out of it.” She looked at their leader curled up against a tree, staring ahead of him at some unseen terror, his hands clutching his head and his body trembling.  
  
“I’m scared…” Yong said, whimpering a bit.  
  
Prometheus moved over and licked Varian’s cheek. He jolted and then blinked, looking bewildered, before he looked around at them as if seeing them for the first time before his gaze focused and he sighed. “…Sorry. I did it again.”  
  
“Hey, it’s fine.” Hugo assured him. “Feel like explaining what’s up with this bandanna?”  
  
“It…” Varian faltered. “He must’ve taken it from my…my _home_. I don’t…I don’t _destroy_ things from my mistakes, I keep them as…as reminders on what not to do. I wore that when I…when we…” He glanced at Nuru, then bowed his head, his eyes half-lidded glumly. “When we took over Corona together.”  
  
“Took ov—” Nuru started, but Hugo cut in.  
  
“Hey, no big! It’s in the past, you’ve made amends. Royal Engineer, after all!” He reminded them all.  
  
Varian looked at the bandanna. “It’s…it’s a taunt. He took it from my _home_.” He stood up. “Is my dad okay?! I need to contact Corona!”  
  
“Whoa, hold on!” Hugo caught him before he ran off into the woods. “We’re not in any town with a messenger bird, you’ll have to wait until then!”  
  
“But my dad could be in trouble! He could be DEAD!” Varian cried. “Andrew could’ve KILLED my DAD!”  
  
“Andrew?” Hugo frowned.  
  
“That’s my old cellmate’s name. Andrew, the leader of the Separatists of Saporia.” Varian said, the words spilling out like water as he fought back tears. “He took advantage of my weakness to trick me into joining them and when Rapunzel talked me into my senses I turned on him and he swore he’d kill me for me! Traitors don’t live in Saporia!”  
  
Hugo let out a breath and slowly stepped back towards the campfire, Varian trying to break free of his hold. “Look…you can’t find out right now _anyway_ , and if he’s around here then your running off would be _exactly_ what he wants, right?”  
  
“You…” Varian gave up the fight and sobbed into his shoulder. Hugo rubbed his back as he led him back to the campfire, where he sat down with him and held him close as he cried himself to sleep on him.  
  
\--  
  
They all had their secrets. Hell, Hugo knew _he_ did. One of which being that he _really_ shouldn’t be getting so close to these guys. He considered that fact as he stood guard outside the tent, listening to Nuru soothe Varian as he sobbed in his sleep, Yong whimpering a little as he tried to vain to help their, usually, fearless leader.  
  
He looked at the “Wanted” poster and frowned, staring at the boy that Varian used to be. The boy that lived all the secret that Varian refused to tell them. They now knew that he was once a criminal, that he’d gotten involved with some bad group, but he felt like he was hiding so much.  
  
He heard a grunt to his left and sighed. “That time already?” He muttered, glancing at the tent. He walked over and stood in front of the large man that’d approached the camp. “I can’t step away now.” He hissed. “She’ll have to wait. There’s been a troubling development and I can’t risk leaving camp.”  
  
“Donella won’t be happy.” The man said firmly.  
  
“I bet she’ll be even _less_ happy, if the totems get stolen away when Varian gets kidnapped by a nutjob from his past because I stepped away for a five-minute report!” Hugo hissed.  
  
The man sighed heavily and walked away. Hugo sighed and walked over to stand guard again, feeling a bit relieved when he heard less sobbing from inside. He looked in and saw Nuru gently rubbing Varian’s back, singing softly to soothe him.  
  
‘Sleep well, kid.’ He thought, looking out again. ‘I’ll try to keep things safe out here.’  
  
\--  
  
The next day was blissfully clue-free and they managed to continue on through the woods until nightfall when they set up their tent again.  
  
“How much longer are these woods? Are we even going the right way?” Hugo asked with a groan. “Varian, think you’re feeling up to taking your watch tonight?”  
  
“Yeah, I think so.” Varian nodded.  
  
“Good. Because I’m _exhausted_.” Hugo huffed, running his hands through his hair.  
  
“Sorry.” Varian looked down.  
  
“Hey, it’s not _your_ fault that some maniac decided to harass you with old shit.” Hugo nudged him. “Stop it with the self-loathing.”  
  
“Self—I don’t—”  
  
“Yeah, you do.” Hugo smirked a bit. “But, hey, it’s fine.” He stretched. “So…you stole a flower, drugged everyone and got sent to prison?”  
  
“…I did more than that.” Varian said grimly, glancing away.  
  
“Well, since you seem to be in an opening-up mood.” Hugo scooted closer and Varian blushed a bit when their hips touched.  
  
“No, I…I don’t want to talk about this.” Varian wrapped his arms around himself. “It was…terrible what I did.”  
  
“ _How_ terrible? You steal a crown next?” Hugo joked.  
  
“I stole a Queen.”  
  
Hugo froze, his smile still on his face. “A…Queen?” He finally managed.  
  
Varian nodded. “The Queen of Corona. I kidnapped her to force her daughter to help me.” Varian sighed, glancing away.  
  
“Oh…” Hugo said awkwardly, not sure what to say to that.  
  
“I also repaired some old automatons I found and used them to attack Corona, as well as giving Ruddiger a serum that made him into a giant, rabid rage monster.” Varian confessed. “And I destroyed my own hometown fighting them. Also, I ruined Rapunzel’s nineteenth birthday party by crashing it and stealing her mother away. And did I mention the part where I nearly trapped the Queen in amber?”  
  
Hugo’s jaw had completely dropped by the end of his confession and Yong and Nuru were staring in disbelief.  
  
“Yeah…losing my dad kind of fucked me up.” Varian nodded grimly.  
  
“But…that was in the past!” Yong said, recovering first. “I mean, you clearly got forgiven!”  
  
“Oh, yeah, like…a whole _year_ later. Rapunzel went off on some _epic quest_ , during which time Andrew got to me and nurtured my feelings of _rage_ and _grief_ and _regret_ and, when she came back, she talked me into stopping him. Also, she got me to help her translate some old scroll to help in the fight against the black rocks, which got me _kidnapped_ and _tortured_ briefly, but, sure, I, uh, made amends.” Varian cleared his throat. “Can we _please_ stop talking about this?”  
  
“Uh…okay.” Hugo nodded, deciding not to push it and send him into another panic attack.  
  
“Thanks.” Varian got up and headed into the tent, Ruddiger following him as faithfully as ever.  
  
The other three were silent for a bit before they all let out confused and distressed cries as everything sank in.  
  
“Did he—really?!” Nuru stammered.  
  
“Kidnapped a _Queen_?!” Hugo looked at the poster in disbelief. “When he was, what, _fourteen_?!”  
  
“Why did he make Ruddiger into a rage monster?” Yong asked.  
  
“This _has_ to be some kind of joke. Any moment now, he’s going to come out of the tent and yell ‘sike’.” Hugo looked towards the tent. “He just doesn’t seem the _type_!”  
  
“He’s _different_ now, though, yes?” Nuru said, though she sounded unsure.  
  
“Well, _yeah_ , you don’t become Royal Engineer if you’re likely to go completely psycho and _kidnap the Queen_ again!” Hugo threw his hands up.  
  
“But, what if some part of him is still…” Nuru looked unsure.  
  
“Come on, this is _Varian_! He’s not going to _lose it_ and _attack_ you, if _that’s_ what you’re worried about!”  
  
“Well, I am NOW!”  
  
“Guys, stop fighting!” Yong cried.  
  
\--  
  
Inside the tent, Varian was listening to his friends talk about him behind his back, tears slipping down his cheeks as he held Ruddiger close.  
  
“ _This_ is what he _wanted_ …” He whispered shakily. “He wanted to tear into me through my friends. He wanted me to rip myself open and expose everything I’ve ever done wrong to them. He wanted them to hate me, distrust me. And it’s working.”  
  
He looked down at Ruddiger. “I…I can’t stay here. They know everything, they’ll never trust me again. We’ll leave tonight…go back to Corona. I need to make sure dad’s safe. Maybe…when I get back, they’ll have forgiven me enough to accept me back into their group.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will they ever accept him back, after this?


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew manipulates Varian into giving himself up to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Varian was, somehow, still trusted to stand guard. He silently packed while the rest were cleaning up from dinner and left a note and half the totems they’d collected to be found in his bed later. Then he silently went outside and stared into the woods as everyone else headed to bed.  
  
“Hey…uh…Varian?” Hugo asked, stopping next to him.  
  
“Go to bed, Hugo. I’ve got first watch.” Varian said, his expression unreadable.  
  
“…Right.” Hugo headed for the tent. “See you tomorrow.”  
  
“Night.”   
  
He looked back at him and then headed in, the flap falling shut behind him.  
  
Varian waited an hour before he headed into the woods on Prometheus, Ruddiger laying across his bag on his back. He left the firelight behind and lit his way through the darkness with the potions on his staff, his expression grim.  
  
He stopped short when he saw a familiar figure leaning against a boulder ahead of him. He bit his lip and walked forward. “Did you enjoy the _show_?” He asked, after climbing down off the donkey.  
  
Ruddiger hissed and Varian shook his head, pointing to Prometheus. Ruddiger got it and silently obeyed, glaring at Andrew from on top of the donkey’s saddle.  
  
“Ah, Varian. _Still_ so predictable.” Andrew stepped away from the boulder and approached him. “Did you enjoy manipulating those kids?”  
  
“What?” Varian frowned. “No. I didn’t—”  
  
Andrew laughed. “Oh, please. You don’t actually _care_ about them; they were just a means to get what you _wanted_ to you.” He started to circle him and Varian gripped his staff tighter. “You led them along for your selfish goal, convincing a Princess to leave her Kingdom, convincing a little boy to come along on a dangerous quest, even convincing a thief...” he stopped next to him and smirked, speaking lower, “that you _cared for him_.”  
  
Varian jerked away from him. “I’m not manipulating _anyone_. The only one manipulating people is _you_!”  
  
“Face it, kid,” he chuckled, “you’re still baking cookies to get people to do what you want them to.” He continued circling him. “You even used _us_ , to try to make the people forget what you did to them.”  
  
“No…” Varian said, but it was less certain this time.  
  
Andrew stopped in front of him and reached up a hand to cup his cheek with a smirk. “You were such a good villain, Varian. And everyone knew it, from the start. You said so yourself, all you did was cause people misery. Why try so hard to be what you aren’t? Why push so hard for the approval of people that will _never_ understand you?”  
  
“No…” Varian pulled away from him. “ _You_ want me _dead_.”  
  
Andrew laughed. “Of course, I do! You _betrayed_ me! But…” He licked his lips. “You could make amends…join us and be what you were always _meant_ to be. Be the villain that you were _born_ to be.”  
  
Varian shook his head. “No!” He threw his hand out. “I threw _away_ that part of me!”  
  
“Did you?” He started circling him again. “Because I’ve been following you for a while, kid, and I’ve seen it still there. You’re a ticking timebomb, and now your little _team_ knows _exactly_ the kind of villain you are.” He wrapped his arms around him from behind and Varian gasped sharply before trying to pull free. “I understand, the Princess was _very_ convincing. She led you along like a puppet on strings, didn’t she? From turning against me, to translating that scroll…to making you her ‘Royal Engineer’, to make sure the only things you ever built from then on were _for her_. Have you ever _truly_ felt freedom, before you embarked on this little quest of yours, since then?”  
  
“Leave me alone.” Varian pulled free and pushed him back. “I‘m _not_ a Saporian! I won’t help you! And I’m just going to Corona to check on the situation, I’m sure they’ll take me back when I come back to them!”  
  
“Is _that_ your answer?” Andrew chuckled darkly. “Really?” He reached out and grabbed his hair roughly. Varian gasped and reached up to grab at his wrist. “I tried to be nice, kid. I really did. You can come with me willingly and be the villain you _KNOW_ you are, or I’ll have my people kill your little _team_. And as for Corona?” He grinned. “Well, who lives and who dies there is _entirely_ reliant on if you come with us _willingly_ or not.”  
  
Varian froze, his eyes going wide and his skin paling. “You…you wouldn’t.”  
  
“You _know_ I would.” Andrew smirked down at him.  
  
Varian’s lips quivered and he lowered his hands. Andrew let go of him and patted his shoulder. “Good boy. It’s so much better to cooperate, isn’t it?” He cupped his cheek and kissed his other one. “Now, let’s go join the others.”  
  
Varian nodded, kneeling to pick up his staff before letting him lead him away into the darkness.  
  
\--  
  
“’I know that you don’t trust me, and so I’m going to give you some time. I’m going back to Corona to check on my family. I’m taking one of the totems with me, as a promise that I will return, and I hope you can come to forgive me. Varian.’ …Fuck.” Hugo sighed, handing the note to Nuru to look over. “Why would he run off when there’s a psycho on the loose?”  
  
“Hugo, Nuru!” Yong pointed to the treeline, where Ruddiger was running out with Prometheus.  
  
“Where’s Varian?!” Nuru asked as they all got up.  
  
Ruddiger started making some dramatic gestures, then picked up the poster and the bandanna and shook both of them.  
  
“…Uh…” Hugo looked at a loss.  
  
“I think he’s telling us that Andrew took Varian!” Yong realized. “Can you lead us to them, Ruddiger?”  
  
Ruddiger started running in circles before pointing himself towards the treeline.  
  
“Get the tent down. We gotta find our _friend_.” Hugo said, clenching his fists. “That twisted son of a bitch must’ve manipulated us into driving him away by making us distrust him!”  
  
“I feel so terrible.” Nuru said, horrified.  
  
“You should.” Hugo huffed.  
  
“As if you aren’t also guilty of distrusting him.” She said, heading over to start taking down the tent.  
  
“Varian…be safe.” Hugo said, clenching his fists.  
  
\--  
  
Varian numbly walked with Andrew until they got into a hot-air balloon at sunrise and then they were lifting into the air. He thought about the last time he’d been in a hot-air balloon and found himself missing Xavier. ‘I hope he’s alright.’ He thought.  
  
“Hey, Varian.” Andrew nudged him and smirked. “We can see your camp from here.” He pointed down.  
  
Varian pursed his lips and looked away, not wanting to see, but Andrew forced him to look. He could see Hugo pacing, Nuru and Yong cleaning up the tent, and then Hugo walking over to help them with the tent. Ruddiger and Prometheus were there too but didn’t notice him looking at them.  
  
“I’m surprised you left him behind.” Andrew remarked. “You had him in prison.”  
  
“I’d rather not give you another weakness to use to manipulate me.” Varian pulled away from his hand and walked over to the other side of the basket to look out at the horizon.  
  
Andrew walked over and wrapped his arms around him from behind. “Are you going to act moody forever? Because, heh, _I_ don’t mind it, but it might bother the others.”  
  
“Stop…touching me.” He pushed him away and moved to go to another part of the balloon but was easily grabbed and pulled back to the older man.  
  
“You’ve really grown since we last saw each other.” Andrew smirked, moving a hand up to stroke his cheek. “How old are you now? Eighteen?”  
  
“Let…go.” Varian tried to pull free, but Andrew didn’t let him go this time and moved his hand down Varian’s side to rest on his hip, holding him comfortably close. “Andrew, I mean it. If you don’t, I will scream and they’ll—”  
  
“They will _die_ because you didn’t do as you were told.” Andrew said coldly. Varian tensed and then bit his lip, glancing away. His eyes went wide when Andrew suddenly kissed him roughly, his teeth digging into his lip.  
  
“Nn!” Varian winced in pain.  
  
Andrew smirked and broke the kiss before licking his lips. “Don’t hurt yourself, Varian.” He chuckled. “That’s _my_ job.”  
  
Varian jerked away from him and he let go this time, laughing. Varian sighed and looked down at the forest below them, his heart aching as he thought of the team he left behind. ‘So stupid…of _course_ it was a trap.’ He thought. ‘He manipulated me just like before and I danced to his tune without missing a step.’ He moved his hand up to his hurt lip and frowned. ‘He’s…adding some new notes to the tune, though. That’s new.’  
  
They left the forest behind and flew towards a mountain that Varian had seen in the distance. ‘You know, a hot-air balloon would be _great_ for travel.’ He thought. ‘Why didn’t I just build one of these, why did I leave Corona with a donkey and go on foot? Because that’s how Rapunzel did it?’  
  
“What’s on your mind?” Andrew asked as he steered them along.  
  
“Why did you _bite_ me?” Varian frowned.  
  
“You bit yourself.” Andrew shrugged. “I just did the same thing.”  
  
Varian sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. “Where are we going?”  
  
“You’ll see.” He chuckled.  
  
They set down on the mountain, on a grassy field. Then he led him out and to the wall which, Varian discovered, opened up with some kind of mechanism Andrew activated out of Varian’s view.  
  
“Welcome home, Varian.” He said, leading him inside. The wall closed behind them and he was led past more Saporians than he ever knew existed. Finally, he was seeing people he actually recognized.  
  
“Well, well,” Juniper, Andrew’s second-in-command, smirked, “look who decided to turn his coat again.”  
  
“He’s realized that he’s not really a… _good_ guy.” Andrew chuckled. “His _new friends_ certainly did.”  
  
“Well, then. Welcome to Saporia, Varian.” Clementine mocked with a cackle.  
  
He didn’t reply, his fists clenched. Andrew, mercifully, led him along to a room, where he took off his bag and set it next to a pile of furs on the floor. A chain was attached to the stone wall and a cuff rested by the bed. “You’ll be staying in here when you’re off-duty until we know you’re _really_ on our side.”  
  
“Then, I’m not leaving here.” Varian said firmly. “Because I’m only working with you so they’re spared.”  
  
Andrew roughly grabbed his hair and he winced, reaching for his wrist. “Watch your attitude, Varian. If you don’t even _pretend_ to be our ally, you certainly won’t have any say on if your father lives or dies. Not to mention your _cute little boyfriend_.” He roughly let go and shoved him to the furs before walking over and roughly grabbing Varian’s wrist to lock the cuff around it. “Start playing nice or lose everything. Your choice.” He grabbed his face and roughly kissed him again before he let go and went to the doorway, which was only covered by a leather curtain.  
  
Varian glared after him and looked at the cuff locked around his wrist. “…Shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is Varian stuck here for good, or will the others come and find him?


	4. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andrew forces Varian to work for him, but he wants something more. Hugo and the others start searching for their missing friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

Hugo walked ahead of Nuru and Yong, the latter riding Prometheus, as Ruddiger led the way through the woods. He stopped at some points and ran in a few circles before he climbed up a tree and then back down before he continued on.  
  
“I don’t see any footprints.” Nuru said, breaking the fragile silence that had been maintained for the past few hours.  
  
“What do we actually know about Saporia?” Hugo asked.  
  
“Uhm…I think they were a kingdom that was highly advanced in technology, and they also worked with magic. But, that was centuries ago, before they were annexed by Corona through marriage.” Nuru replied.  
  
“Great. So, assuming these…Separatists are the same, what can we expect to be dealing with?” Hugo asked her.  
  
“Well, it’s just a rumor, but I heard they had hot-air balloons, airships, dragons—”  
  
“Dragons?!” Yong yelped.  
  
“It’s just a rumor!” Nuru said, looking at him. “I don’t actually know anything but what I was taught about Saporia, and that wasn’t much!”  
  
“Hold on.” Hugo looked at Ruddiger, who was taking off. “Ruddiger, wait!” He hurried after him and they followed him.  
  
Ruddiger burst out of the woods and staring out at the field ahead of them. Hugo sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing at his eyes. “Oh, you’ve gotta be _kidding_ me. He could’ve been taken _anywhere_!” He looked around at the roads and the mountain.  
  
Ruddiger was running in circles again and Hugo and Nuru exchanged hopeless expressions.  
  
“Maybe we can find a town and see if anyone saw a hot-air balloon?” Yong asked, then added, “Or a dragon.”  
  
“…Best option we’ve got so far.” Hugo said with a resigned expression. “Let’s hope we make it in time to save his life.”   
  
They started down the road.  
  
\--  
  
Varian silently worked at his worktable, trying to focus on his work and not on the sound of the chain cuffed around his neck that was only long enough to let him walk around the lab. He heard footsteps and glanced over to see Andrew had walked into the room.   
  
He looked around at the work Varian had done so far and chuckled. “I’d almost forgotten how efficient you are. Look at these.” He ran his hand over one of the weapons Varian had built. “Beautiful.”  
  
“I followed your blueprints exactly, though I didn’t have one of the most critical pieces.” Varian frowned.  
  
“Oh, don’t worry about that. We’ll add that later.” Andrew assured him.  
  
“Fine, whatever.” Varian sighed and went back to his work.  
  
Andrew walked over and wrapped his arms around him. “Why don’t we take a little break, hm? You look like you could use one.”  
  
“I don’t.” He kept working, trying to ignore him.  
  
“That _wasn’t_ a _suggestion_ , Varian.”  
  
The chain suddenly grew taut and he froze, his hand slowly letting go of the tool he was working with. It landed harmlessly on the table.  
  
“Good boy.” The chain was released and then the cuff unlocked before he was walked backwards away from the worktable and then turned to be walked out of the lab and back to his room.  
  
He was sat down and cuffed again and then Andrew ran his hands through Varian’s hair with a serene smile on his face.  
  
It had been one day since his capture (surrender) and Andrew had been pretty clear about his intentions for the alchemist, whether he wanted it or not. To refuse, – anything – would mean that those Varian cared about would suffer and/or be killed. Maybe suffer before being killed. He gave a resigned sigh as the cuff was unlocked to remove his glove before being locked back around his wrist. Then the other glove was removed, as well as his goggles and apron. He kissed him roughly as one hand unfastened his vest, the other going for his belt.  
  
“I can…” He managed, once he was finally allowed to breathe. “I can undress myself, if you unlock the cuff.”   
  
“You won’t try to run?” Andrew fingered the cuff.  
  
“You have everyone I love held at knifepoint; you think I would try to run away?!” Varian asked angrily.  
  
Andrew laughed and unlocked the cuff. “Fine, but I want more than just you undressing yourself.”  
  
Varian paled. “No.”  
  
“That’s right, Varian. I’m talking about reciprocation.” He sat back and gestured to him. “Well? Start undressing.”  
  
Varian glanced away bitterly as he started to remove his clothes, the smug Saporian leader watching him the entire time. He hated this. He hated _him_. He wanted to be with Hugo and the others but especially Hugo, not…not the guy that haunted his nightmares with threats of death.  
  
Not the monster that kept dragging him back into the dark with clawed hands sharp as the black rocks that dug into his skin and raked bloody scars down his arms and legs, forcing the darkness inside of him to come to the surface with a forked tongue.  
  
He finished stripping down and sat silently on the furs. Andrew moved forward and cupped his cheek before kissing him tenderly, a mockery, and then moving lower to leave marks on his body with his lips, teeth and tongue.   
  
He pulled away and chuckled. “Why don’t you undress _me_ , next?”  
  
Varian resisted the urge to punch him, knowing it would only end badly, and moved forward to start undressing the man. He started with removing his fur vest, followed by his shirt. Then he started on his boots and pants. Andrew caught him before he could unfasten his pants and kissed him, moving his hands over the younger man’s naked body. “Keep working.” He murmured into the kiss, and Varian silently obeyed.  
  
Once they were both completely naked, Andrew pulled his hair-tie out and let his hair fall around his shoulders before he kissed him again. “Well, then.” He chuckled and moved forward, pushing Varian down onto his back on the furs. “Let’s get started.”  
  
Varian nodded, and then Andrew was showing him some kind of gel in a jar, which he used on his own fingers before he set the jar to the side and moved his hand down to, as he put it, “prepare” Varian. He let out a sharp gasp as he felt fingers pushing inside of what things just shouldn’t enter and he clung to him, his nails digging in.  
  
“It hurts!” He cried.  
  
“Relax. It’ll be easier. Never been with a man before?” He chuckled. “Or even _thought_ about it, I’m guessing? Were you planning on your little boytoy to tell you how to do it, kid?”  
  
Varian blushed, glancing away. It’s true that he’d been interested in Hugo, found him _very_ attractive, but he hadn’t actually known or even _thought_ about how they would go about having s-sex. If Hugo felt so inclined.   
  
“Is it...nn… _supposed_ to hurt?” He asked.  
  
“It always does the first time. You’ll come to enjoy it, though.” Andrew assured him.  
  
Varian didn’t know enough about the subject to call him a liar and endured the pain, his nails digging into the man’s back as finger after dinger was pushed inside and shifted around, pushing, spreading, stretching him out. He felt strange, his body too warm, and it felt kind of drafty down there when the fingers finally left.  
  
“You ready?” Andrew purred in his ear.  
  
No. “Just do it.” He growled, glancing away. ‘I’m only doing this so you don’t kill them.’ He thought. ‘Don’t think it’s anything else.’  
  
“Alright.” Andrew pulled away a bit and then lifted his hips before pushing something hard, warm and long into him. He let out a sharp cry of pain as he was invaded and he clung to the man again. “It hurts! Take it out, it hurts!”  
  
“Hah, your little boytoy should _thank_ me for doing this, so he doesn’t have to endure all your _whining_!” Andrew laughed as he pushed in deeper. “Just relax, it’ll feel real good soon.”  
  
“It hurts!” Varian repeated, then let out a sharp gasp as Andrew pushed against something that made him see stars, a wave of pleasure rushing through his body. “W-What…”  
  
“There you go.” Andrew smirked and reached up a hand to cup his cheek. “How did that feel?”  
  
“Wh…what…” Varian breathed.  
  
“Now that we’ve established that,” Andrew pulled almost all the way out before slamming back in. The combination of pleasure and pain wracked Varian’s body and addled his brain as Andrew repeated the motion many more times. Varian clung to the man, feeling confused and dazed and completely at a loss. How could he be feeling pleasure _and_ pain? Was this normal? Is this what it would feel like, if he and Hugo…  
  
“Hn!” Varian gasped sharply, his body arching when Andrew mixed the sensations from inside with one from outside, his lips latching onto his neck.  
  
“That’s it…keep making those sounds. Let me hear you, Varian.” Andrew purred. “You feel so good around me. Heh, makes me glad that I failed to kill you that day on the airship. And now you’re all grown up, ripe for the harvest.” He chuckled in his ear. “Daddy’s best crop.”  
  
“S-Stop…” Varian groaned, feeling completely helpless.   
  
Andrew, mercifully, stopped the teasing and instead focused on making them both feel good. His hand moved to wrap around Varian’s cock and he kissed him as he pumped it in time with his eager thrusts.  
  
Varian could no little more than cry out and moan, feeling good but also so guilty because he didn’t want to this with Andrew, never Andrew, what would Hugo think of him clinging to another man like this, being violated and _enjoying_ it?  
  
Then Andrew’s hips stilled and held him close, letting out a long groan. He pumped Varian’s cock a few more times and then Varian let out a moan of pleasure s he reached his limit and ejaculated between them.  
  
Then it was over. Andrew held him a bit longer before he kissed him, pulled out, and got up to get dressed. Varian stared blankly at the ceiling, barely registering the click of the cold, metal cuff locked around his bare wrist, and then he heard Andrew’s boots walking out of his room.  
  
That’s when he finally broke down and curled up on his side, wrapped his arms around himself and started to cry.  
  
\--  
  
Hugo sat up in bed and left it to go look out the window from the inn he was staying at. “Varian…” He clutched at his chest, then realized something and looked towards the mountain. “…YONG, GET UP!” He ran out of the room. “Princess!”  
  
“Huh? What? Five more minutes…” Yong said from his bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hugo realized that they wasted a LOT of time looking in the wrong place.


	5. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team rescue Varian and Hugo makes sure that Andrew is never a problem for Varian again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (c) Disney

“We haven’t seen any sign of a hot-air balloon around here, but someone _did_ see one flying by.” Hugo said as they set out.  
  
“Hugo, it’s two in morning.” Yong yawned.  
  
“Two in the morning on Varian’s _second_ day of captivity in what is most likely _that mountain_.” Hugo pointed to it. “Yong, you got your explosives?”  
  
“Yeah, I always got my ‘splosives.” Yong nodded sleepily.  
  
“Good, because we’re gonna break into the mountain.” Hugo said as they approached it.  
  
“Okay.” Yong nodded firmly.  
  
Nuru looked up at the mountain. “Wait for us, Varian.”  
  
“We’re on our way.” Hugo promised.  
  
\--  
  
Varian lay silently on the furs, his tears all died up after he stopped crying. He heard footsteps and looked up to see Andrew had returned with a drink. “Here, you’re probably pretty thirsty after that.” He said with a grin.  
  
Varian slowly sat up, wincing a bit, and accepted the drink. Andrew knelt next to him and helped support him as he drank it. “How are you feeling?”  
  
Varian glared at him and shoved the empty cup into his chest. “Just leave me alone, you _got_ what you wanted.”  
  
Andrew was about to reply when an explosion rocked the mountain. “What the fuck?!”  
  
“Andrew!” Juniper ran inside. “Intruders! Two teenagers and a child.”  
  
“Kill them!” Andrew yelled.  
  
“No!” Varian cried. “Please, I can make them leave, just release me and—”  
  
“Do you think I’m stupid?! I’m not taking that chance!” He snapped. Then he took a deep breath and chuckled. “Actually, don’t kill them. Capture them, and bring the one in green here.”   
  
“Yes, Andrew.” She hurried off.  
  
“What are you going to do?” Varian asked anxiously.  
  
Andrew smirked and stroked down Varian’s body. “You’ll find out. I’m going to show your boytoy just how much you belong to me.” He kissed him. “How much you have _always_ belonged to me.” He unlocked the cuff.  
  
Varian looked confused, then looked over as they heard struggling sounds. To his horror, Hugo was roughly dragged in by two Saporians.  
  
“Hugo!” He cried.  
  
“Varian!” Hugo looked relieved to see him alive, then shocked when he realized he was naked, with marks all over his body.  
  
“Ah, the boytoy.” Andrew smirked, getting up and walking over to catch his chin in his hand. “Did he have fun playing with you?”  
  
“What?” Hugo frowned.  
  
“Andrew, please—”  
  
“Quiet, Varian. The adults are talking.” Andrew smirked as the other Saporians laughed.  
  
“It’s cute that you think a boy with a heart as black as his could ever love you.” He went on. “Our Varian— _my_ Varian is a deadly work of art, who overthrew a kingdom with me at the tender age of fifteen and swore his allegiance to me. He’s just been playing, biding his time until I told him to make his move.”  
  
“Hugo, please, he’s lying!” Varian cried.  
  
“He’s a Saporian, through and through. And you? You were just a pastime, a plaything.” He let go of his face and went over to kneel next to Varian. “Varian, can I get a kiss?”  
  
Varian looked at Hugo with wide, shaking eyes, then looked at Andrew with one, last pleading gaze before he closed his eyes and kissed him.  
  
“Ah, sweet as ever.” Andrew purred.  
  
Hugo stared at them silently. Andrew kissed Varian’s cheek and then moved his hand down his body. “Why don’t we show him who you _really_ belong to, sweetheart?”  
  
“…No.” Varian whimpered.  
  
Andrew smirked and laid him down. “Don’t refuse me.” He said quietly.  
  
“Not in front of him…please…”  
  
“Okay, that’s enough of the show.”  
  
Varian and Andrew looked over as Hugo opened his hands, clenched until now, to drop two small balls, one black and one white. When the white one hit the ground, it released a white flash that they had to cover their eyes to avoid being blinded. When the black one hit the ground, it released a gas that made the chains on his wrists brittle and he easily broke his hands free before he reached into his pocket and dropped pink balls on the feet of the Saporians behind him.  
  
“My turn.” He grinned and pulled out another ball, this one purple, and threw it. Andrew got up and pulled Varian with him as it hit the ground near the bed. A purple goo-like creature rose from the broken glass and charged at Andrew while Varian, well-aware of what it was, quickly moved as far away as possible from it.  
  
“Varian!” Hugo ran over to him. “Are you alright?”  
  
“Uh, _no_?!” Varian looked at the creature. “Why did you make another one of those?!”  
  
“It’s okay, it doesn’t do that _thing_ it tried to do before anymore! It just attacks and pins before going dormant as goo!” Hugo assured him, gathering up Varian’s clothes for him. “Here, uh, get dressed.”  
  
“Hugo, I—”  
  
“Don’t worry, you already told us your story. I know he was full of shit.” Hugo cut him off.  
  
“It wasn’t _entirely_ lies, though. I _did_ take over Corona with him and I _did_ swear fealty to Saporia, but I betrayed them!” Varian started to get dressed, wincing as he did.  
  
The creature shrieked and Hugo winced. “He’s found its only weakness; fire. Hurry!” He pulled out a knife and more pink goo balls before charging at Andrew.  
  
Varian nervously got dressed and then reached for his bag and staff. Andrew was dodging the goo bombs pretty good, his attention on Hugo. He reached into his bag and pulled out his own goo bomb before throwing it.  
  
Hugo saw it coming and jumped out of the way. Andrew did not and let out a cry of outrage when it broke open, trapping him in goo.  
  
“Varian!” He said in a warning tone.  
  
Varian walked over to Hugo. “Are you okay?”  
  
“Oh, yeah, I’m fine. Poor goo monster’s dead, though.” Hugo wrapped his arm around Varian’s waist and the younger male blushed. “As you can see, asshole, he’s decided to betray you again. Now, we’re going to retrieve our friends, who have probably also freed themselves because we are FUCKING AWESOME and LET you capture us, and then we’re going to leave.”  
  
Andrew laughed. “Fine, run away, then. We’ll see how long you can run before I catch you again, Varian.”  
  
Varian tensed. “No…no more running.”  
  
“Varian?” Hugo looked at him.  
  
Varian grabbed Andrew’s fallen knife from the floor and let out a feral scream, charging at the man. Hugo ran forward and grabbed him around the waist from behind. “Varian, no!”  
  
“Let me go! If I don’t kill him, if I just keep running, he’ll find me again! He’ll threaten the ones I love again! As long as he’s alive, they’re not safe! NO ONE IS SAFE!”  
  
Andre laughed. “There he is! There’s the feral beast that destroyed Old Corona!”  
  
“Varian, NO!” Hugo repeated, turning him to him roughly, startling him a bit. “If you kill him, he’ll be dragging you right back into the dark, into a part of the dark you can NEVER come back from!”  
  
“Hu—” Varian’s eyes widened as Hugo kissed him. Tenderly, passionately, gently, it was nothing but loving and Varian swooned and closed his eyes, dropping the knife as he wrapped his arms around him. “Mm…”  
  
Hugo slowly broke the kiss and smiled. “Now, why don’t we go and find the others?”  
  
“Okay…” Varian nodded, feeling a bit wobbly in the knees.  
  
Hugo smiled and wrapped his arm around his waist before walking him out. “See, the difference between you and me, _sir_ , is that Varian is choosing me without any force involved. You? Hah.” He chuckled. “Don’t think I didn’t see that chain by his bed or the bruises on his wrist and neck. You _never_ had him, not willingly.”  
  
He smiled at Varian. “And he _never_ lost me.”  
  
Varian leaned his head on his shoulder as they walked out of the room.  
  
\--  
  
As Hugo had said, the other two had managed to free themselves, though Nuru had to help Yong a little. The Saporians were all trapped in goo bombs and they cried out with joy when Hugo appeared with Varian, the latter of the two looking tired but happy.  
  
They left the mountain and got back to the inn, where Yong and Varian went to sleep in their room and Nuru and Hugo sat downstairs with drinks between their hands.  
  
“Was it…bad?” She asked softly.   
  
Hugo nodded.  
  
She looked towards the mountain. “What do we do now? He might come after him again, that goo will dissolve in 13 hours.”  
  
“He won’t be there for 13 hours.” Hugo looked at her. “Your Highness, I humbly request permission to _deal with the problem_.”  
  
She looked surprised and confused, then understanding. “Be careful.”  
  
“I’ll need Yong’s explosives.” Hugo stood up. “I’ll be back soon.”  
  
She nodded and he left the table to go up to the boys’ room.  
  
He found Varian and Yong both fast asleep, Ruddiger curled up in Varian’s arms. Yong’s explosives were in his bag next to the bed and Hugo took the bag and headed out, pausing to look over at Varian as he whimpered in his sleep.  
  
‘Which of the nightmares in your life are you dreaming about now?’ He thought, pursing his lips. ‘I’ll be removing one of them tonight.’  
  
He closed the door and left silently, passing by Nuru and giving her a salute as he went. She nodded approvingly and then sipped at her drink before looking towards the window to watch him head towards the mountain on Prometheus.  
  
\--  
  
Timebombs were tricky things. You had to make sure to keep track of how much you set the last one for and set the next one with some time removed, if you wanted them to all go off at once. He passed by struggling Saporians with disinterest, setting bombs and heading for the room he’d found Varian in.   
  
Andrew was still there, waiting out the goo to dissolve in 13 hours.  
  
He wouldn’t be standing that long.  
  
“Well, well. If it isn’t the boytoy.” He taunted. “How’s my alchemist doing?”  
  
“He’s not _your_ anything.” Hugo said, walking over to set a bomb before he turned to him. ‘One last thing to do.’ He thought.  
  
Thirty minutes  
  
“He will be once I get out of this.” Andrew said, having not seen what he was doing.  
  
“You won’t be.” Hugo walked over and picked up the knife. “See, the difference between you and I is that _I_ try to help keep Varian out of the dark…even though I’m in it. And I will happily go further into it to keep him in the light.” He shifted the knife in his hand as he circled him. “Even if that means I have to commit the ultimate crime.” He stopped behind him and stabbed him in the back, earning a choked gasp, before he twisted the blade, blood gushing out and onto his clothes. “For him, it’s worth going to hell. As long as he doesn’t have to fear _you_ anymore.”  
  
“Heh…then, I’ll see you there, boytoy.” Andrew chuckled weakly as he slumped forward, the goo keeping him upright.  
  
Hugo dropped the knife and then walked out of the room.  
  
Twenty-five minutes.  
  
He made his way through the mountain, passing by the stuck Saporians, not even sparing them a glance.  
  
Fifteen minutes.  
  
He made his way to the exit and took off his blood-stained jacket, throwing it inside before he got onto Prometheus and rode back to the town.  
  
Ten minutes.  
  
He reached the town gates and raced for the inn, where he got off and turned to the mountain, Nuru stepping out to join him.  
  
“Did you do it?” She asked him.  
  
Five.  
  
Four.  
  
Three.  
  
Two.  
  
One.  
  
A deafening explosion sounded as the mountain started to crumble in flames, waking up everyone in town. Hugo glanced to his side as Varian came out and watched in shock and confusion as the mountain that had been his prison was completely reduced to rubble, the Saporians crushed and blown to pieces inside of it.  
  
Letting out a soft gasp, Varian climbed onto Prometheus and took off for the mountain. “Varian!” Nuru called as they ran after him.  
  
They found him digging in the rubble, picking up stones and throwing them aside as he dug around looking for something unknown.  
  
“Var, Var.” Hugo knelt next to him. “Varian, they’re gone. They were crushed. They were still in the goo when we left, remember?”  
  
“No…no, they…no.” Varian shook his head. “No…how did this happen? How did… _how did this happen_?!”  
  
Hugo held Varian close, looking over at Nuru with a grim expression. She returned it, both of them wondering if they’d done the right thing.  
  
End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor guy has a LOT of baggage to unpack.


End file.
